Tamperproof closure for receptacles



July 17, 1951 E. GREENE TAMPER-PROOF CLOSURE FOR RECEPTACLES Filed Dec.9. 1949 f i" .1417 y la 23 Z5 J5 :Nvx-:NroR fafwomw GREENE mm5ATTORNEYS` Patented July 17, 1951 UFFICI?.`

TAMPERPROOF CLOSURE FOR RECEPTACLES Edgeworth Greene, Great Notch, N.J., assignor to Inter-Seal Corporation, Spring Lake, N. J., acorporation of Delaware Application December 9, 1949, Serial No. 132,044

This invention V relates to closures vfor sealing containers, such asbottles, andV is concerned more particularly with a novel closure, whichcannot be removed from the container without the breakage of parts ofthe closure. The closure of the invention is similar to that shown in myPatent 2,409,846, issued October 22, 1946, but differs from the patentedclosure in that it is provided `with an improved inner or lockingmember.

cooperating parts, which cause the cap and member to move in unison,when the cap is threaded on the neck to seal the latter. When an attemptis made to unscrew the cap, the cooperating parts mentioned act to wedgethe member and cap apart and force is thereby applied to an area of thecap which is bounded by a circular weakened area. The locking member isof novel construction and so made that it is somewhat distorted by thestrain referred to. When the strainson the cap and member have built upsuiciently, the weakened area of the cap is suddenly ruptured and theportion of the cap bounded thereby is thrown free of the closure by thespring back of the inner member to its normal condition. The use of thenew inner member thus insures a clean break of the cap throughout itsweakened area and a complete ejection from the closure of a part of thecap.

For a better understanding of the invention, reference may be had to theaccompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 is a central vertical sectionalview, partly in elevation, of a bottle closure embodying the invention;

Fig. 2 is a View similar to Fig. 1 but showing how the crown of the capof the closure is thrown free when an attempt is made to unscrew theclosure from the bottle;

Fig. 3 is a central vertical sectional View, upon an enlarged scale, ofthe locking member of the closure; v

Fig. fi` is a top plan View of the locking member; and

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary bottom plan view of thev locking member.

1o claims. (01."215-42) In the drawing, there is illustrated one form ofclosure embodying the invention, which is adapted to be mounted upon theneck I 0 of a bottle, the neck being provided with a conventionalexternal thread II. The closure includes a cap I2, which may beconveniently molded of a plastic material and has a skirt I3 with aninternal thread I4 engageable with the thread II, and a crown I5, theunder surface of which is concave. The crown is connected tothe outer.part of the cap by a narrow annular weakened area I6. The cap isprovided on the inner face of its crown with at least one projection I1,and preferably with a plurality of like projections arranged in acircular series. Each projection has a front vertical wall E8, whichleads, when the cap isrotated to screw it upon the bottle neck, and asurface I9, which extends upwardly and rearwardly from the free end ofthe projection. In the closure illustrated, the cap has four projectionsI1 and the cap is rotated clockwise to thread it upon the bottle neck.

The top of the bottle neck is sealed by a gasket 20 of suitablecompressible material, such as composition cork, the gasket preferablybeing provided with facings 2 I, 22 of sheet material on its upper andlower faces. The lower facingy is preferably made of or coated with amaterial, which resists slippage when the gasket is compressed againstthe end of the bottle neck.

An inner or locking member 23 is disposed between the cap and thegasket. The locking member is of circular form and it is provided with aflat circumferential flange 24, which rests upon the top of the gasketin alignment with the wall of the bottle neck. The under surface of theange is preferably roughened, as, for example, by forming it with aseries of radial ratchet teeth 25, the sloping surfaces 26 of whichextend upwardly and forwardly in the direction of rotary application ofthe cap. Outwardly fromv flange 24, the member may advantageously beformed with a concave stiffening bead 21, which is engageable by theunder surface of the cap outwardly from the weakened area I6.

The locking` member is provided with at least one vertical wall 29engageable with the front wall I8 of a projection Il on the cap andpreferably also has a surface 3U, which slopes upwardly and rearwardlyto the top of the ver'- tical wall, so as to be engageable with thesloping surface I9 on a projection Il. The vertical and sloping wallsare formed on a part of the locking -member which is distortable andresilient and, for this purpose, the walls are formed in the centralpart of the member bounded by flange 24 and lying above the open end ofthe neck of the bottle when the closure is applied thereto. Preferably,there are a plurality of pairs of vertical and slop-ing walls on thelocking member, so that even though the member is inserted into thecapwithout careful orientation, the front verticalwall of eachprojection on the cap will lie opposed" and close to a vertical wall onthe member and the sloping wall of the projection will lie above asloping wall in the member.

The central portion of the locking vmember may be nat with the verticaland sloping walls e formed on projections rising from theplane of themember or the central portion may bedepressed and provided withprojections having the vertical and sloping walls. In the preferred formof the member, its central area is raised or up' wardly domed and formedwith a series of depressions 28, each of which has a vertical wall v2&3

lwhich leads in the direction of rotation of the cap. Each depressionalso has a wall 30 slop- 'ingupwardly and rearwardly from the bottom ofthe depression to the top of the vertical wall of the followingdepression. The depressions 28 are .of a shape and size to receive theprojections on thel'lcap, so that, when the locking member is insertedinto the cap, the projections on the cap enter the depressions and thevertical and sloplilng surfaces I8, I9 on each projection lie inopposition, respectively, to the walls 29 and 30 of a depression.

When the parts are assembled in the manner described and the closure isplaced upon the end of the bottle neck with the end of the neck enteringtheskirt of the cap, the rotation of the cap causes its thread I4 toengage beneath the external thread I I on the bottle neck and, as therotation of the cap continues, the cap is moved vinwardly along theneck. During the rotation of the cap, the engagement of the verticalwall I8 of each projection with the vertical wall 29 of a depression inthe locking member causes the member to rotate with the cap. As therotation proceeds, the cap forces the locking member against the gasket,so that the latter is compressed against the end of the bottle and neck.During the rotation of the locking member with 'the cap, the slopingsurfaces 26 of the ratchet teeth on the locking member are in leadingposition and the teeth slide along the top surface of the gasket andnally become embedded therein as the latter is compressed. When the caphas been thoroughly tightened in place, the gasket is compressed againstthe end of the bottle neck by the ange 24 on the locking member and themember is held in place against the gasket by engagement of the innersurface of the cap outside the annular weakened area I6 with the top ofthe bead 21 on the member.

If an attempt is now made to counter-rotate rthe cap, so as to unscrewit from the bottle neck,

the sloping surfaces I9 on projection ITon the cap begin to slide up thesloping surfaces 30 of the depressions 28 formed in the upper surface ofthe inner member. During such movement of the cap relative to the innermember, the latter is held against rotation by the vertical faces on itsratchet teeth 26, which have been embedded in the top surface of thegasket. As a result of the counter-rotational movement of the caprelative to the locking member, the pressure on the bead 21 is relievedand force is applied to the domed central section of the inner membertending to force it inwardly and slightly distorting it. An equal andopposite force is applied to the sure can then be unscrewed from thebottle neck in the usual way, and the absence of the crown vfrom the capshows that the bottle has been opened. When the bottle is again to beclosed, the cap is threaded on the bottle neck and, when the cap istight, the bottle is sealed by pressure applied by the cap through thelocking member to the gasket.

' `The new locking member is made of sheet material and preferably ofsheet metal. It can be formed by stamping at little expense and, whenmade with the raised central portion, it forms `a rigid structure, eventhough made of light gauge stock having a thickness as little as .010"or' '.015. The depressions formed in the central portion stiffen themetal and, when the member is domed, the annular section of arcuateshape, which extends between the outer edges of the depressions and thevinner edge of the circumferential flange 24, resists inward distortionof the domed part of themember, when pressure is applied thereto duringcounter-rotation of the cap. The form of the member is such that itprovides the desired resistance during counter-rotation of the cap andstores sufcient energy so that the cap is rupturedfcleanly along itsannular weakened area. When the rupture has occurred, the member snapsback to its initial shape and the crown of the cap is vigorouslyejected. The formation of the inner member with the central domedportion offers the further advantage that, when the crown of the cap hasbeen ejected, the top of the inner member occupies a position close tothe top level of the cap giving the closure a morepleasing appearancethan would otherwise be the case. At the same time, the rigidity of theinner member prevents it being accidentally deformed in an inwarddirection, when the closure is used to reseal a bottle that has oncebeen opened.

In constructing the new closure, it is important that inner znember ofthe cap have such resilience and the weakened area of the cap have solimited a strength, that the amount of torque required to remove the capbe not substantially greater than that required to unscrew an ordinaryscrew bottle cap. The weakened area must be weak enough to break readilyupon the vapplication of a relatively limited force applied by the capunder torque and yet sufficiently strong, when it is reinforced by thecontacting surfaces ofthe inner member beneath it and the correspondingsurfaces of the crown of the cap, to resist exterior shocks ordinarilyencountered. The inner element must be sufliciently resilient to respondeffectively to forces at least no greater than are required to break theweakenedarea of the cap. The inner element must thus be of suitablematerial and construction, so that it is capable of building up tensionprogressive in intensity, until such time as the breaking point'of theweakened area of the cap is reached. Experience has shown that theweakened area of the cap of the present closure may be from .010" to.020" thick, since a cap with a weakened area. of such thickness meetsthe requirements mentioned above and is practical to manufacture. Whenthe cap is made of the material known commercially as Bakelitef a.weakened areal yof .010 to.020"' thick will withstand a static force ofapproximately 50 lbs. before rupturing and it is not necessary to applyexcessive torque to the cap to effect the rupture. Thetension necessaryto rupture such a cap may readily be built up progressively in an innermember, which is of the domed construction shown in Fig. 3 and is madeof tinplate about .012" thick.

It has also been found desirable to construct the cap and inner element,so that, as the cap is tightened upon. the bottleneck, the opposedsurfaces i9 on the cap and 39 on the inner element will engage oneanother at the same time as, or slightly in advance of, contact betweenthe top surface of bead 2ll and the under surface of the cap directlyabove it. Whenl this construction is employed, undesirable rotary playbetween the cap and inner member, after the cap has been tightlyapplied, is avoided. Also, when the sur- :faces IS and Sil engageslightly in advance of` any thrust being taken by bead 2l', preliminarytension is built up in the domed central section of the inner element,as it is deliected during the application of the cap, and, although thisinitial tension in the inner member is, of course,.in'1 suflicient tocause rupture of the cap, it necessitates less rotary movement of thecap to effect such rupture. With the construction described, the cap hasa more positive feel and, when it is unscrewed, rupture of the capoccurs more promptly.

The use of a flexible inner member affords a further advantage, in that,as the central domed area of the member is depressed, the annular bead21 on the member tends to rise. lTlhe bead thus quickly meets the capand takes the major thrust thereof.

In the construction formed with a plurality of projections l', eachhaving a vertical face I8 and a surface I9 sloping upwardly andrearwardly from the end of the projection, and the locking member isformed with an equal number of depressions, each having a vertical wall29 and a wall 3D sloping upwardly and rearwardly from the lower end ofthe depression. It will be apparent that various alternativeconstructions may be used, as, for eX- ample, the cap may have a singleprojection,

which includes as an essential a vertical face like face I8 and isotherwise shaped as desired, while the locking member is formed with avertical and a sloping wall like walls 29 and 30, respectively. Instead,the projection Vand depression described may be formed on the lockingmember and cap, respectively. The necessity of orienting thev member andcap in assembling them may be avoided by providing a lug on one of theseparts and a plurality of depressions on the other.

In the appended claims, the term rotation is intended to refer to rotarymovement of the closure by which it is applied to the container andcounter-rotation refers to rotary movement of the closure by which it isreleased from the` container.

I claim:

l. A closure for sealing the opening through the end of a container,which comprises an outer cap adapted for rotary -application to the endof the container, a metallic locking member within the cap, the memberhaving an annular portion adapted to overlie the end of` the containerand a resilient central portion adapted to overlie the opening andraised above the level of the annular portion, and gasket means adaptedto rest ontheendof the container to close theopeningthe illustrated, the`Cap `isr that, upon rotation of the cap, they engage positivelyandi-cause the locking member to rotate with theicap to force thelockingmember against the gasket-means and apply pressure thereto, saidcooperating parts also having other opposed surfaces, 'at least lone ofsaid other opposed surfaces being inclined in such direction and at suchan anglethat, upon counter-rotation of the cap, said other opposedsurfaces engage and slide relative to one another to urge the cap awayfrom the locking member and rupture the weakened, area, said cooperatingparts being carried, re` spectively, by the portion of the crown of thecap within thew'eakened area and by the resilient central portion'of thelocking member.

2. A closure for sealing the opening through the end .ofa containerhaving an annular sealing surfacearound said opening, which comprises anouter cap adapted to t over the container end and having meansengageable beneath external means on the container end, upon rotation ofthe cap, to move the cap inwardly along the end and to hold it in placethereon, the cap having a central portion of its top surrounded by aweakened area and at least one projection from its inner face,theprojection having a vertical face, which leads during rotaryapplication of the cap to the container, and a face sloping upwardly andrearwardly from the free end of the projection, gasket means within thecap and adapted to rest upon the annular sealing surface of thecontainer and close the container opening, and a locking member of sheetmetal Ibetween the crown of the cap and the gasket means, the lockingmember having a circumferential flange contacting the gasket `means inalignment with the annular sealing surface of the container end, and acentral resilient portion adapted to overlie the opening and raisedabove the level of the iiange, the edge portion of the flocking memberoutwardly from. the flange being raised above the flange and contactingthe crown of the cap outwardly from said weakened area, the lockingmember being formed with at least one vertical wall and a wall slopingupwardly and rearwardly to the top of said vertical wall, the verticaland sloping faces on the pron jection lying opposed, respectively, tothe vertical and sloping walls on the locking member, thev projectionbeing carried by the central portion of the cap within the weakened areaand the vertical and sloping walls being formed in the resilientkcentral portion of the locking member overlying the open end of thecontainer.

3, A- closure for sealing the opening through theend of a' container,which comprises an outer cap member adapted to be applied to the end ofthe container by rotation, an inner locking inem-V ber, the cap memberhaving a central area surrounded byan annular weakened area and themetallic locking' member having a circumferential flange adapte'd tooverlie the end of the container around its opening and surrounding are1- silient' central area overlying the open end of the container andraised above the level of the flange, one of the members having aprojection from its central area formed with a vertical surface and asurface sloping upwardly and rearwardly from the free end of theprojection and the'other member having a vertical wall rising fromitsic'entral area and a wall sloping' upwardly and rearwardlyxto thetopof the vertical wall,-

amazes 7 the vertical and sloping surfaces onthe projecf tion lyingopposed, respectively, to vertical and sloping walls, and gasket meansWithin the cap outside the inner member and adapted to close thecontainer opening, the .verticalsurface on one member engaging thevertical wall =of the other to cause the members to move in unisonduring rotation of the cap member and the sloping surface and slopingwall sliding upon one another during counter-rotation of the cap member4to wedge the central areas of the members apart with coincidentdeformation of the resilient central area until the cap member isruptured through its weakened area and its kcentral portion is thrownfree by return of the resilient central area to normal position.

4. An inner locking member for use in a closure for sealing the openingthrough the end of a container, which comprises a disc having aperipheral ange and a resilient central part lying` offset above theplane of the flange, the central part of the member being formed. withat least one pair of walls consistingof a vertical radial wall and awall sloping downwardly clocks wise from the top of the vertical wall. Lt

5. A closure for sealing the opening through the neck of a container,which comprises an outer cap adapted to t over the end ofthe neck andhaving means engageable beneath external means on the neck, uponrotation of the cap, to move the cap inwardly along the neck and to holdit in place on the neck, the cap having a substantially continuousannular weakened area and at least one projection from its innerface'and lying, inwardly from said area, the projection havinga'vertical face, which leads during rotation of the cap, and a facesloping upwardly and rearwardly from the free end of the projection,gasket means within the cap and engageable'withthe end of the neck, thegasket means adapted to close the neck opening and being capable of resisting slippage relative to the neck when under pressure, and an innermember of sheet metal between the cap and the gasket means, the innermember having a circumferential ange resting upon the gasket means inalignment with the wall f the neck, the central part of the inner memberoverlying the opening being outwardly domed and formed with at least onedepression for receiving the projection on the cap, the depression beingdefined in part by a vertical face and a face sloping upwardly from thebottom of the depression, the vertical face and the sloping face of thedepression lying opposed, respectively, to the vertical face and thesloping face on the projection.

6. A closure for sealing an opening through the end of a container,which comprises an outer cap adapted to t over the end of the containerand having means engageable beneath the external means on the container,upon rotation of the cap, to move the cap inwardly along the containerand to hold it in place thereon, the cap having a substantiallycontinuous annular weak-- ened area, gasket means within the cap adaptedto close the opening and engageable with the end of the container, thegasket means being capable of resisting slippage relative to the end ofthe container when under pressure, and a locking member within the capand having a circumferential flange resting upon the gasket means inalignment with the end wall of the container, the central part of thelocking member within the ange being resilient and offset upwardlyfromthe plane of the flange, the cap and locking member having cooperatingparts providedxwith op.-

gio

posed surfaces, which engage positively, upon rotation of the cap, andcause the lockingmember to rotate with the cap and to be forced againstthe gasket means and apply pressure thereto, said cooperating parts alsohaving other opposed surfaces at least one of which isin-V clinedupwardly and rearwardly so that, upon counter-rotation of the cap, saidother opposed surfaces engage and slide relatively to one another tourge the cap away from the locking member and rupture the weakened areaof the cap, said cooperating parts being carried, re-f spectively, bythe portion of the cap within the weakened area and by the resilientcentral part of the locking member.

7. An inner locking member for use in a closure for sealing an openingthrough the end of a con-A tainer, which comprises a disc of sheet metalhaving a substantially flat circumferential ange and a raised centralpart, said part having a se.-4 ries of depressions leading inwardly fromits raised surface, each depression having a vertical wall, which leadswhen the member is rotated clockwise, and a wall sloping upwardly andrearwardly from the bottom of the depression.

8. A closure for sealing the opening through the neck of a container,which comprises an outer cap adapted to t over the end of the neck andhaving means engageable beneath external means on the neck, uponrotation of the cap, to move the cap inwardly along the neck and hold itin place thereon, the cap having the central portion of its topsurrounded by a weakened areaand at least one projection from the innerface of said central portion, the projection having a vertical face,which leads during rotary application of the cap to the container, and aface sloping upwardly and rearwardly from the free end of theprojection, gasket means within the cap engageable with the end of theneck to close the opening, and a locking member of sheet metal betweenthe crown of the cap and the gasket means, the locking member having acircumfer` ential iiange contacting with the gasket means in alignmentwith the end of the neck of the container, an upraised peripheral beadbeyond the iiange and engaged by the cap outside its weakened area, anda central resilient portion within the flange raised above the plane ofthe flange, the central portion of the locking member being formed withat least one vertical wall and a wall sloping upwardly and rearwardly tothe top of said vertical wall, the vertical and sloping faces on theprojection respectively opposing the vertical and sloping walls on thelocking member.

9. A closure for sealing the opening through the neck of a container,which comprises an outer cap member adapted to be applied to the endofthe neck by rotation, the cap member having a portion of its topsurrounded by a weakened zone, gasket means within the closureengageable with the end of the neck to close the opening, a lockingvmember between the top of the cap member and the gasket means and freelyrotatable with respect to the container neck when the closure is beingapplied, the locking member having a central resilient part alignablewith the opening in the container neck and a peripheral portion adaptedto engage on opposite sides, respectively, the upper surface of thegasket means and the inner surface of the top of the cap member outsideof the weakened zone and substantially in alignment with the end of thecontainer neck, and means on the cap member within the weak-r ened zoneand on the resilientpart of the locking member co-operable uponcounter-rotation of the cap member to rupture the material in theweakened zone, the resilient part of the locking member being movableaxially in response to forces applied to it by said co-operating meansin rupturing the material in the weakened zone.

10. A closure for sealing the opening through the neck of a container,which comprises an outer cap member adapted to be applied to the end ofthe neck by rotation, the cap member having a portion of its topsurrounded by a weakened zone, gasket means within the closureengageable with the end of the neck to close the opening, a lockingmember between the top of the cap member and the gasket means and freelyrotatable with respect to the container neck when the closure is beingapplied, the locking member having a central resilient part alignable`with the opening in the container neck and a peripheral portion adaptedto engage on opposite sides, respectively, 20

the upper surface of the gasket means and the inner surface of the topof the cap member outside of the weakened zone and substantially in 10alignment with the end of the container neck, the resilient part beingoffset from said portion, and means on the cap member within theweakened zone and on the resilient part of the locking member(zo-operable upon counter-rotation of the cap member to rupture thematerial in the weakened zone, the resilient part of the locking memberbeing movable axially in response to forces applied to it by saidco-operating means in rupturing the material in the weakened zone.

EDGEWORTH GREENE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,054,032 Conner et al Sept. 8,1936 2,054,034 Conner et al Sept. 8, 1936 2,066,390 Cahoon et al Jan. 5,1937 2,409,846 Greene Oct. 22, 1946

